Governing bodies disagree on Timber Lawsuit involvement.
By Wendi LaRue
10 of an estimated 130 taxing districts have decided to opt out of the $1.4 billion lawsuit over timber management intensity conducted by the State of Oregon per Roger Nyquist Chairman of the Linn County Board of Commissioners. Of those 10 districts, five are located in Clatsop County: Clatsop County Board of Commissioners, the Clatsop County Fair, 4-H and Extension Service District, Road District No. 1, and the Rural Law Enforcement District. Clatsop County has more than 147,000 acres in state forest lands and theoretically could have received as much as $100million if the plaintiffs succeed in a lawsuit win with a public payout.
Linn County, with significant financial backing from private industrial timber companies and other private sources, filed a class action lawsuit against the State of Oregon and the Oregon Department of Forestry requesting over $1.4 billion for allegedly failing to maximize “greatest permanent value” through timber harvest and breaking the contract held with over 15 counties to do so. The terminology “greatest permanent value” is cited from a 1939 law which was reviewed in the late 1990s. After the review, the Oregon Department of Forestry adopted a clarified definition of “greatest permanent value” in 1998 to include forest health, recreation and other values of forest land (in addition to timber harvest revenue). The change from the original 1939 law was not taken lightly, before adopting the broader definition, a methodical 3 year rule-making process was conducted which was subjected to intensive scientific review and invited public comment. A keystone argument of the Linn county lawsuit is that the State has breached the contractual agreement to maximize the value of our State forests since the 1998 definition adoption.
This lawsuit has been highly controversial for many reasons, but foremost is the dollar allotment that taxing districts could potentially receive by remaining a plaintiff in the lawsuit. While many districts who voted to opt in or out of the lawsuit decided not to give public comment, Clatsop County Board of Commissioners Chair, Scott Lee stated that “the overwhelming message from public testimony has been in favor of balanced forest management and against the Linn County Lawsuit.” After the 3-2 vote of the Clatsop Board of Commissioners to opt out, Lee continued the conversation on public radio and discussed how timber harvest in Clatsop County has steadily increased over the last 20 years and has not “breached the contract” of maintaining state timberland and management for “greatest permanent value.”
Moving forward, Clatsop County will not be a part of the lawsuit. However many districts within Clatsop County are still part of the suit including the Port of Astoria, Seaside and Jewell School Districts and Clatsop Community College. With a majority vote needed to officially opt out of the suit by January 25th, 2017, many districts were divided, tied, or did not conduct a vote for public record. Clatsop Community College was a special case as the vote was 4-3 in favor of opting out, but one vote was determined invalid due to the vote being submitted via email, with the resulting valid votes of 3-3 and unable to opt out.
Thus, the lawsuit continues with an estimated 120 plaintiffs representing 15 counties. The State of Oregon and Oregon Department of Forestry may spend upwards of $1.5 million in legal fees when defending the suit, but that is a drop in the bucket compared to the potential payout desired by the Linn County Lawsuit.
